


Bad Influence

by Nehanshika_524



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: (bc i saw bmc in manly and i really really loved Keira Connelly as the Squip!!!), Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Fem!Squip, Friends to Lovers, Ghosts, M/M, Mutual Pining, Vampires, honhonhon, i dont wanna spoil it but
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-27
Updated: 2018-06-27
Packaged: 2019-05-29 09:52:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15070613
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nehanshika_524/pseuds/Nehanshika_524
Summary: Jeremy and Michael had parted ways long ago. When they finally meet again- a pure, lucky accident- it's like nothing has changed. Best friends, a team reunited once again.It's true, in a way; almost everything is the same as it once was.But some changes are more than skin-deep.





	Bad Influence

**Author's Note:**

> title comes from this [absolute banger](https://soundcloud.com/user-232485905/bad-influence)

There was something different about Jeremy.

Michael couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he was different than when they’d last seen each other. He was taller and older, sure, but that wasn’t it. Something else was new.

Three years ago, Jeremy had been forced to move schools. They were thirteen at the time, best friends, and had been ever since kindergarten; they practically grew up together, so Jeremy leaving was devastating. Some issue with his parents, or something- Jeremy didn’t even keep contact.

But then, Michael supposed, he hadn’t really tried much either- he was just… angry, really. He was angry with Jeremy for leaving, even though it wasn’t his choice, because he’d had to survive on his own and suffer through the pain of middle school. Player 2 had left the game, leaving Michael stranded to deal with the hordes of deadly popular kids and bullies and homework.

But none of that mattered now, because Michael had moved too- unknowingly, right across the street from Jeremy. They went to the same school now.

Michael didn’t even realise at first- in fact, for the first week of the year, he had no clue he was even in the same town as Jeremy.

The town was… weird. Not weird as in “Blaire witch project” weird, but it was unusual; a deep forest on one side, out of which sounded inhuman howls and growling, a moon brighter than his phone’s flashlight, and so, so many of the kids wore black. Maybe weird wasn’t the right word; more eerie. Within the very first day, he knew something strange was happening in this town. And he was scared shitless.

But everyone seemed to turn a blind eye to its eeriness, so Michael chose to as well. He kept to himself most lessons, ate alone, silent when he saw his classmate- Rich? -take out a blue contact lens, revealing an iris red as roses, pretending not to notice how the sunlight shone directly through one girl’s hand, like she was made of glass. He swore, once, he saw the school journalist glide right through a door- but he knew better than to draw attention to it. He’d seen enough Buzzfeed Unsolved to know it was a bad idea to mess with this kinda shit.

But by the time he got home, his heart was pounding. _What the fuck? What the FUCK?!_

He paced around his bedroom. What the fuck was this town? Ghost journalists? Red-eyed schoolkids? Girls with translucent skin? He ran over to his laptop. Maybe he should look something up. Maybe he’d just been seeing things? Overreacting? Yeah, that was probably it. The town wasn’t THAT bizarre; he was just on edge from the move.

He opened Ecosia and typed in the name of the town. The first thing that came up was a news article about dead animals falling from the sky, raining down on rooftops and cars, and causing traffic delays for a full month whilst the carcasses were cleaned out. Nobody saw where they came from; it was midnight when it happened, and they all fell at once, like some badly programmed Skyrim mod.

The next hit was some conspiracy theorist’s blog, talking about how the school was haunted and the town itself “shrouded in the supernatural”. Frustrated, Michael shut down his browser and opened Word. His tortoise, Bowser, gave a disgruntled squeak from the corner of the room.

“Yeah. Me too, buddy.”

So, his new home wasn’t normal. Maybe he should take notes, try and figure it out for himself, instead of blindly following online conspiracy theories.

 

REASONS MY TOWN IS FUCKED: A LIST OF SHIT I’VE SEEN THAT SCIENCE CAN’T EXPLAIN

  * The school journalist (Jenna?) can walk through walls
  * Rich’s natural eye colour is blood-red
  * The girl in my Chemistry class disappears in direct sunlight
  * It _literally_ rained cats and dogs
  * Nobody else seems to notice it, or they’ve decided to ignore it, so I’m gonna document everything I see.



 

* * *

 

 

The first week, Michael meticulously took notes. He’d even taken to carrying a small notebook and pen around, sketching and writing the bizarre things he saw. One such instance, he was scribbling out a theory about the nature and origin of Rich’s eyes, when he bashed right into somebody walking in the opposite direction, his notebook falling to the floor. He bent down to pick it up.

“Sorry! Sorry, I’ll get that—”

“Shit! Sorry, I didn’t— Wait—" He looked up. “ _Jeremy_?”

“Wh-- Michael!” Jeremy’s face lit up. “Hey!” They stood up, and Michael noted, with some kind of affectionate annoyance, that Jeremy was still a good foot taller than him. He stared. “J-Jeremy! Holy shit!” He laughed, immediately bringing his friend in for a bone-crushing hug. Jeremy hugged back. Was that icy thrill he felt at the touch exhilaration? “It’s so good to see you! Dude,” he asked when they pulled apart. “Why didn’t you text?”

Jeremy looked down at his shoes. “Uh… My… My mom didn’t want me to keep in contact. She thought you were a, um… Bad influence. Her words,” he said quickly. “Not mine! I think you’re the best influence I’ve ever had in my life, actually, and honestly it sucked SO BADLY without you, it was like being Player 2 but without Player 1 and I had to get through Level 9 on my own and, God, I just got eaten ALIVE at this school, I mean, come on, Jewish _and_ into theatre? Do you know how much shit you cop for even ONE of those things? And oh man, I am so sorry I never texted, I wish I could’ve, but my mom—”

“Buddy,” Michael laughed. “You’re rambling again.”

Jeremy flushed. “Right, right. I’m just!” He grinned, grabbing Michael’s shoulders; he felt another cold jolt. “So happy to see you again! I didn’t know if I ever would.” Michael’s smile broadened. “AOTD, my house at six?”

“You know it! Oh- here’s my new number! Text me your address, okay?” He fumbled with a bit of paper, scrawling a number on it. The bell rang loudly. “Gah, okay, I have to go, sorry! Bye, Michael!”

“See you this afternoon, Jer!” He called after him. His heart felt light, and he smiled giddily. Holy shit. Holy shit, he’d just met Jeremy again for the first time in years. It didn’t feel real. He stared at the note in his hands, a barely-readable series of numbers in rushed handwriting, in blue ink. _Being able to read Jeremy’s handwriting is a gift,_ Michael thought. _A useless, useless gift._

And Jeremy… He was the same Jeremy Michael had always known. Awkward, excitable, sweet, dorky... his best friend had suddenly re-entered his life, like nothing had changed. Or, Michael supposed, it was more like he had suddenly re-entered his best friend’s life.

He had English and was probably late for class already, but he didn’t mind. Not even caring if anyone saw, Michael held the note to his chest, feeling airy and happy. He couldn’t wait for this afternoon.

 

* * *

  
“Apocalypse of the Damned!”

“Level Nine!”

“THE CAFETORIUM!” They yelled together.

Jeremy grinned. Michael sat beside him on a beanbag chair, controller in hand, leaned forward to focus on the game. But he turned to Jeremy and grinned back. “Let’s kick some zombie ass, Jer-bear.”

“Nooooo,” Jeremy cried as the level began. “I thought you’d forgotten that name!”

Michael clapped a hand over his chest in mock astonishment. “I am shocked- nay, offended, that you would assume I’d _ever_ —Oh shit zombie. Shit. Shit! I’m dead. I’m gonezo. Revive me, buddy!”

Jeremy smirked, taking out the zombie on his left and scoring a pretty sweet headshot. “I dunno, _Mike_ , should I?”

“Dude… you’re bringing out ‘Mike’?”

“You brought out _Jer-bear_!”

“Fair. But seriously, come revive me.”

It was like they’d never been apart. Things were different, of course- for one, Michael noticed, Jeremy had gotten better at AOTD- but for the most part, they clicked as well as they did when they were thirteen.

Michael looked over at Jeremy. He’d died again, much too far away for Jeremy to revive him, so he had a good fifteen seconds before he respawned. Jeremy’s face was illuminated by the red and black of the game, eyes wide with concentration, angel bones jumping as he tapped the controls. He ran a hand through his hair when he was anxious or needed to focus, and it had become an unruly mess. Michael smiled. How typical.

But something about him was… different. Not just that he was older and taller and better at videogames; he didn’t seem as shy anymore, walked with a different air about him, his voice steadier- almost smooth. But there was something more.

He remembered the hug earlier, and the way his face lit up with warmth at seeing Michael, but how his hands were ice-cold. How pale he’d seemed. Given what he’d seen that week, it wouldn’t be too much of a jump to assume… But he could be wrong.

Michael shook his head as his character respawned, attention turning back to the screen. Maybe he was overthinking it. He should just be happy- and he was! He was back with his Player 2, his best friend, his favourite person. There wasn’t cause for concern.

But there was no harm in asking, right?

“So,” Michael said. “Three years, huh? Catch me up. Tell me all the crazy shit that went down after you left.”

Jeremy flinched and jerked the controller to the side, as if this would somehow help him avoid a zombie’s attack. “Oh! Um, well, I actually… made a friend, weirdly enough.”

“ _No_ ,” Michael said in mock astonishment. “One whole friend?”

He laughed. “Yes, one whole friend. His name’s Rich! He was kind of an asshole to me for the first two years, but he stopped recently. Decided I might not be such a bad person after all. It was chill!

“Then,” Jeremy added, tossing a weapon to Michael’s character, “he introduced me to this girl-“

“Oooohh,” Michael teased, trying to quell the rising discomfort in his chest. “She cute?”

“Oh my God, don’t. I mean, yeah, she’s pretty gorgeous, but… too terrifying for me to be into. Imagine if like… Lara Croft had a goth phase and wore glittery makeup.”

“Oof.”

“Yeah. But she’s really cool! Kinda… Helped me be popular, I guess. She, like, moved here from Japan, too, but her English is perfect.”

Michael frowned at that. “Helped you… be popular? Like, cool-people popular? Let me get this straight-“

“You’ve always had a bit of trouble with that,” Jeremy joked. Michael shoved him playfully. “Ha-ha. But… A guy who tormented you for two years suddenly decides you’re friend material, and a mysterious girl from Japan is totally on board with it?”

“It was more than that,” Jeremy said. “But yeah! I’m not being bullied anymore, I’m doing well in class, thanks to her tutoring me, and… I heard a rumour that this girl, Brooke, is actually into me? So… yeah! It’s kind of overwhelming, but… Cool, huh?”

Michael nodded, grinning. “Totally, man, that’s amazing! But… You’ll never be, um…” He swallowed. “Too cool for m… for, uh, videogames, right?”

Jeremy paused the game, turning to Michael. “Never, Michael,” he said softly. “I’m sorry I left. But we’re a team again, and that won’t change anytime soon, got it?” He grinned. “It’s a 2-Player game, right?”

Michael smiled, grateful to have his best friend back. _See, Michael? Nothing to worry about._ “Right.”

**Author's Note:**

> WOO i'm not super happy with how this chapter ended, but i should have a new one up soon enough :D
> 
> questions? comments? requests? hmu on my writing sideblog: dhillarearenn!


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